High strike-rates a pointer to a small number of yards dominating

Irish horseracing is, in many ways, enjoying a period that has surpassed all that has gone before it, depending on the metrics that you apply.

Whether it is the number of Cheltenham Festival winners each year, the percentage of horses over a certain rating or the quality of the equine superstars on show, each measure would certainly seem to be at least on a par with previous generations. There certainly seems to be a generous quantity of riches in the sector at present.

Those who are less inclined to see the positives will point to the polarisation of the sector as being a significant negative, citing the fact that the top trainers have the vast majority of the success at the expense of the many small trainers who support the industry in many parishes across the country.